Most first names in English exist in three forms : e. g., Thomas, Tom, Tommy or Susan, Sue, Susie. They are called the regular, short, and pet form, respectively. This paper analyzes the short forms of polysyllabic names from a morphological viewpoint. There are six known patterns in making short forms : (1) omission of letter(s) at the beginning, (2) omission of letter(s) in the middle, (3) omission of letter(s) at the end, (4) omission of letter(s) both at the beginning and in the middle, (5) omission of letter(s) both at the beginning and at the end, (6) omission of letter(s) both in the middle and at the end. Of these six patterns, (3) ranks first and pattern (1), second. These two forms account for over 84% of all short forms. The short form is less commonly used for feminine names such as Mary and Sarah. A few short forms are exception to the rules, such as Hank for Henry. This paper discusses these exceptions and classifies them under the title of sound changes and independent names. Except in a few cases, short forms have a strong tendency to Consonant-Vowel-Consonant (CVC) and its variants, i. e., closed syllable structure-a hallmark of the English language.

キーワード

English and American First Names / Short Forms of First Names / Morphological Analysis of Short Forms / General Characteristics of Short Forms